JP2014063241A - Moving body information communication device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a moving body information communication device which utilizes information about surrounding conditions of a vehicle acquired by inter-vehicle communication and minimizes power consumption for storing an image in order to realize power saving.SOLUTION: A moving body information communication device comprises: a current position detection unit 4 which detects a current position of a moving body; a communication unit 7 which receives pieces of information including current positions of other moving bodies; a front camera 11 which captures a front image of the moving body; a rear camera 12 which captures a rear image of the moving body; an image storage unit 14 which stores the image captured by the front camera 11 or the rear camera 12; and a control unit 1 which determines whether there is the other moving body approaching the moving body on the basis of the current position of the moving body and the pieces of information received from the other moving bodies, if there is the other moving body approaching the moving body, determines whether the other moving body is in the front or the rear of the moving body, performs control for supplying power to the front camera or the rear camera to capture an image according to the determination result, and controls the image storage unit 14 to store the captured image.

Description

  The present invention relates to a mobile information communication apparatus, and more particularly to a mobile information communication apparatus that is mounted on a mobile body and has a drive recorder function for transmitting and receiving information to and from other mobile bodies.

  In recent years, advanced information communication systems (ITS) have been used to solve road traffic problems by providing information on road traffic such as traffic accidents and traffic jams, driving support, and information exchange between vehicles. : Intelligent transport systems) is under development.

  The form of wireless communication for automobiles in the field dealing with the safe driving support system in ITS can be broadly divided into road-to-vehicle communication and vehicle-to-vehicle communication. In road-to-vehicle communication, roadside machines and vehicles communicate information, whereas in vehicle-to-vehicle communication, vehicles directly communicate information.

  Information transmitted from the vehicle to the vehicle by the inter-vehicle communication includes information indicating the traveling state of the vehicle such as the current position of the vehicle (own vehicle and / or other vehicle), moving speed, traveling direction, vehicle driver information, and the like. included. A mobile communication apparatus that performs various controls using each information has been proposed.

  As a mobile communication device that performs control based on vehicle driver information, for example, an inter-vehicle communication device disclosed in the following Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-97443) can be cited.

  The inter-vehicle communication device disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a vehicle position detection unit that detects the current position of the vehicle, and driver information of the driver of the vehicle (whether it corresponds to a beginner driver or an elderly driver). A driver information acquisition unit that acquires the vehicle position information and the driver information, and a transmission / reception unit that receives the other vehicle position information transmitted from the other vehicle and the driver information of the other vehicle, And a display unit that displays the position of the host vehicle on the map and the position information of the other vehicle and the driver information of the other vehicle.

  According to this configuration, when the driver of the own vehicle is a beginner driver or an elderly driver (hereinafter referred to as “beginner driver etc.”), it is assumed that an accident is likely to occur. Driver information is transmitted to the inter-vehicle communication device installed in the other vehicle, and when the driver of the other vehicle is a beginner driver, the driver information of the other vehicle is received and the vehicle is driven. It is supposed to be able to support safe and secure driving in order to call attention.

  As a device for analyzing the cause of the occurrence of a vehicle accident, a drive recorder that records vehicle travel information such as vehicle speed before and after the accident, acceleration, brake pressure, and steering angle is known. For example, in Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-224105), images of the front and rear of a vehicle are taken using a front camera and a rear camera mounted on the vehicle, and the images are buffered together with vehicle position information and time information. There has been proposed a drive recorder that is configured to always record and store an image or the like recorded in a buffer in an image storage unit when the impact detection sensor detects an impact.

JP 2010-97443 A JP 2004-224105 A

  It is possible to mount the function of a drive recorder in a vehicle-to-vehicle communication device such as Patent Document 1. That is, as in Patent Document 2, a front camera and a rear camera are mounted on a vehicle, and video recording and storage of the front camera and the rear camera can be controlled by the inter-vehicle communication device.

  However, in the drive recorder disclosed in Patent Document 2, power is always supplied to the front and rear cameras in order to constantly capture and store in the buffer images before and after the vehicle. Thus, if the camera is always activated, there is a problem that power is wasted. In particular, EVs (electric vehicles) are required to save power, and it is required not to use unnecessary power.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and by using the surrounding vehicle situation acquired by inter-vehicle communication, it is possible to save power by minimizing power consumption for storing images. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mobile information communication device that can be configured.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application is a mobile information communication device that is mounted on a mobile body and transmits / receives information to / from another mobile body. A current position detection unit to detect; a communication unit that receives information including a current position of the other moving body; a first camera that captures an image of one of the moving bodies; and an image of the other of the moving body Based on the second camera, a video storage unit that stores video captured by the first camera or the second camera, the current position of the moving body, and the information received from the other moving body. Determining whether there is the other moving body approaching the moving body, and if there is the other moving body approaching, determining whether the other moving body is one or the other of the moving bodies, According to the result of the determination, the first camera or the first camera Shooting the image by controlling to supply power to the camera, characterized in that it comprises a control unit for storing the captured image in the image storage unit.

  The invention according to claim 2 of the present application is the mobile information communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is the earliest to the mobile object when there are a plurality of the other mobile objects approaching the mobile object. An image is taken by controlling to supply power to either the first camera or the second camera in the direction of the other moving body approaching.

  The invention according to claim 3 of the present application is the mobile information communication device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an impact detection sensor for detecting an impact on the mobile body, and the control unit is configured such that the impact detection sensor receives an impact. If detected, the video stored in the video storage unit is stored.

In the invention according to claim 1, in a mobile information communication device mounted on a mobile body and transmitting / receiving information to / from another mobile body, a current position detection unit that detects a current position of the mobile body, A communication unit that receives information including the current position of another moving body, a first camera that captures one image of the moving body, a second camera that captures the other image of the moving body, and the first The other approaching the moving body based on the video storage unit that stores the video taken by the camera or the second camera, the current position of the moving body, and the information received from the other moving body If there is the other moving body approaching, it is determined whether the other moving body is one or the other of the moving bodies, and according to the result of the determination, the first moving body is determined. Supply power to the camera or the second camera Cormorants controlled by shooting the image, and a control unit for storing the captured image in the image storage unit.

  By configuring in this way, the power supply to the camera is controlled so that only the video of another moving body approaching the moving body is stored in the video storage unit, so that the power consumption for storing the video is minimized. Limit. Further, since the capacity of the stored video is small, for example, analysis after an accident can be performed in a short time.

  In the invention according to claim 2, in the mobile information communication apparatus according to claim 1, by controlling the power supply to only the camera in the direction of the other mobile object that is closest to the mobile object, the video is displayed. The power consumption for storage can be minimized. In addition, only necessary images can be taken and stored.

  In the invention according to claim 3, in the mobile information communication device according to claim 2, the image is stored when the impact detection sensor detects an impact, so that an unnecessary image is not stored. In particular, it is possible to reduce the burden on the analysis processing of the video after storage.

1 is a configuration block diagram of a mobile information communication apparatus in an embodiment of the present invention. It is a process flowchart of a mobile body information communication apparatus. It is explanatory drawing of a process of a mobile information communication apparatus.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiment shown below exemplifies a mobile information communication apparatus for embodying the technical idea of the present invention, and is intended to specify the present invention as this mobile information communication apparatus. However, the present invention is equally applicable to the mobile information communication apparatus of other embodiments included in the scope of claims. For example, the mobile information communication device according to the present invention may be a device incorporated in a navigation device, or may be a device that can be removed from a vehicle and carried.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a mobile information communication apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The mobile body information communication device 10 includes a control unit 1, a display unit 2, an operation unit 3, a current position detection unit 4, a map information storage unit 5, a travel locus storage unit 9, a battery 6, and a communication unit. 7, a notification unit 8, a front camera 11, a rear camera 12, a buffer 13, a video storage unit 14, and an impact detection sensor 15. The mobile body information communication device 10 is mounted on a mobile body, for example, a vehicle such as an automobile.

  The control unit 1 is a control unit that comprehensively controls the entire mobile information communication apparatus 10. The control unit 1 includes a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM (all not shown). The ROM stores a program executed by the control unit 1 and parameters and data necessary for executing the program. The CPU executes various programs stored in the ROM. The RAM temporarily stores data obtained during various processes and data obtained as a result of various processes. These CPU, RAM, ROM and the like are connected via a bus. Note that the CPU, ROM, and RAM may be partially or fully integrated on one chip.

  The display unit 2 displays a map screen (a screen displaying a map image including a route to the destination, a mark indicating the current position of the own vehicle (a mobile body on which the mobile body information communication device 10 is mounted), etc.) and a menu screen. It is a display means for displaying. In addition, the display unit 2 can display an image captured by the front camera 11 or an image captured by the rear camera 12.

  The operation unit 3 is input operation means for a user to operate a menu or the like. As the operation unit 3, various keys and buttons may be provided on the main body of the mobile information communication device 10, or a touch panel function may be added to the display unit 2. Further, the operation unit 3 may be a remote controller for remotely operating the main body of the mobile information communication apparatus 10.

  The current position detection unit 4 detects the current position of the host vehicle and includes a GPS receiver, a self-contained navigation means, a position calculation CPU, and the like. The self-contained navigation means includes a steering angle sensor, an acceleration sensor, a distance sensor, a direction sensor, and the like, detects the traveling distance and traveling direction of the own vehicle, and obtains the current position based on the integrated value of these values. Further, the GPS receiver receives radio waves transmitted from a plurality of GPS satellites with a GPS antenna, and calculates the absolute position and traveling direction of the vehicle by performing a three-dimensional positioning process or a two-dimensional positioning process. Here, the traveling direction is calculated based on the current vehicle position and the previous vehicle position. In addition, the detection method of a running direction is not specifically limited, For example, it is good also as detecting from the rotation direction of a tire, and may detect using a direction sensor. In addition, the current position detection unit 4 may detect from the traveling speed of the own vehicle on which the mobile information communication device 10 is mounted. The travel speed may be calculated from the output of the vehicle speed sensor or the acceleration sensor, or may be calculated from the difference between the travel distance between GPS histories and the GPS reception time.

  The map information storage unit 5 stores map information referred to by the mobile information communication device 10 and a specific point on the map information as the user's home position, company position, or the like. The map information includes network data (node data, link data). As the map information storage unit 5, a NAND flash, an SD memory card, or the like can be suitably used. The map information storage unit 5 may be built in the mobile information communication device 10 or may be configured to be detachable from the mobile information communication device 10. The map information may include a map image. The map image may be drawn on the display unit 2 based on the network data included in the map information. Further, the map information may be stored in advance in the map information storage unit 5, or may be stored in the map information storage unit 5 by the communication unit 7 to be described later received from a roadside machine or the like.

  Here, the network data included in the map information is composed of node data in which roads are nodes such as inflection points and branch points, and link data in which routes connecting the nodes are links. . Node data includes node attributes such as node number, node position coordinates (latitude / longitude), road type, information indicating intersection information, intersection name, etc., and the number of connection links and connection link number data. Also good. In addition, the link data includes the link number including the node number that is the start and end points of the link, the road type (general road, expressway), distance and / or required time, the road name such as the national highway No. Data, speed limit information, etc. are included. In addition to the above, the link data includes data such as a parking lot including a bridge, a tunnel, a railroad crossing, a toll gate, and a parking area as a link attribute.

  In the present embodiment, the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling is the current position of the vehicle detected by the current position detection unit 4 by the control unit 1 (the traveling direction and the traveling speed may be added) and map information. Based on the above, it can be specified by performing a map matching process.

  The map matching process may be performed by the control unit 1 or the current position detection unit 4. That is, based on the current position detected using the GPS receiver and / or the autonomous navigation means and the map information, the map matching process is performed, and the current position where the map matching process is performed is set as the corrected current position to the control unit 1. It may be output.

The traveling locus storage unit 9 stores traveling locus information of the vehicle on which the mobile body information communication device 10 is mounted. Specifically, based on the current position of the vehicle detected by the current position detection unit 4 and the map information stored in the map information storage unit 5, every predetermined time, every time the current position is detected, or Information on the traveling position of the own vehicle is stored as traveling locus information of the own vehicle for each predetermined distance. Information related to the travel position of the vehicle (running trajectory information) includes date and time (for example, the date and time when the position coordinates are stored), position coordinates including the latitude X and longitude Z indicating the current position at each date and time (positions after map matching processing) The coordinates (which may be coordinates), the road name of the road on which the vehicle is traveling (such as the national highway No. ○ line), and the closest (closest) node number from the current position of the vehicle on the road are stored.

  When the data amount of the travel locus exceeds the capacity of the travel locus storage unit 9, the control unit 1 deletes old data and stores new data. In addition, the storage in the travel locus storage unit 9 includes vehicle information and map information from when the user gives a recording instruction using the operation unit 3 to when a recording stop instruction (which may be turned off) is issued. It may be generated on the basis of the mobile information communication device 10 or whenever the mobile information communication device 10 is powered on. Further, the travel locus information is acquired by various methods such as wired / wireless communication and stored in the travel locus storage unit 9 even if the mobile body information communication device 10 does not generate the travel locus information. May be.

  The battery 6 is a power supply means when the mobile information communication device 10 is used in a portable manner, and a secondary battery such as a lithium ion battery or a nickel metal hydride battery can be suitably used. Of course, as the battery 6, a primary battery such as an alkaline manganese dry battery or a manganese dry battery may be used, or a fuel cell may be used.

  The communication unit 7 is a transmission unit (not shown) that transmits information to a mobile body information communication device mounted on another vehicle (other mobile body) that can communicate with the mobile body information communication device 10 of the host vehicle (mobile body). And a receiving unit (not shown) for receiving information transmitted from the mobile information communication device of the other vehicle. The communication method is preferably non-contact communication such as wireless communication or infrared communication.

  The information received by the communication unit 7 from the moving body information communication device of the other vehicle includes information on the current position of the other vehicle and information on the moving speed of the other vehicle as necessary. Similarly, the information transmitted from the communication unit 7 to the mobile information communication device of the other vehicle includes the current position of the own vehicle and information on the moving speed of the own vehicle as necessary.

  The notification unit 8 performs notification processing of various information. For example, when the other vehicle is approaching the own vehicle, the notification unit 8 can notify the driver of the own vehicle that the other vehicle is approaching. The notification method is not particularly limited as long as the content can be understood. For example, the notification method can be performed by outputting a predetermined sound via a speaker (not shown). In addition, various types of information may be notified by displaying predetermined characters, images, and the like on the display unit 2, and in that case, the display unit 2 also functions as a notification unit. Or it is good also as performing a sound | voice and a display simultaneously. In addition, although the alerting | reporting part 8 and the display part 2 are provided as another structure, when the alerting | reporting method includes the display of the predetermined character, an image, etc. on the display part 2, the display part 2 is set to the alerting | reporting part 8. It may be configured to be included.

  The front camera 11 is a photographing unit that is installed in front of the host vehicle and photographs a front image. The rear camera 12 is a photographing unit that is installed behind the host vehicle and photographs a rear image. The front camera 11 and the rear camera 12 may be installed on the left and right sides of the host vehicle, and may be configured by a total of four cameras.

  The buffer 13 is a storage unit that temporarily stores video captured by the front camera 11 or the rear camera 12. The buffer 13 can store, for example, a 10-minute video by LIFO (Last In First Out). For example, after 10 minutes of video is stored in the buffer 13, the next 10 minutes of video is overwritten.

  The video storage unit 14 stores a front or rear video including other vehicles determined to be approaching the host vehicle by the control unit 1 among the videos stored in the buffer 13.

  The impact detection sensor 15 detects an impact applied to the own vehicle. Examples of the impact detection sensor 15 include an acceleration sensor and a pressure sensor. When the value of the detected signal exceeds a predetermined threshold, the impact detection sensor 15 outputs a signal indicating that an impact has been applied.

  Next, the operation of the mobile information communication apparatus 10 will be described based on the processing flowchart of FIG.

  The control unit 1 always communicates with another vehicle via the communication unit 7 and receives information including the current position of the other vehicle (step S201), and includes the current position of the own vehicle and the current position of the other vehicle. Based on the information, it is determined whether there is another vehicle approaching the host vehicle (step S202). For example, the control unit 1 calculates the distance to the other vehicle from the current position of the other vehicle received via the communication unit 7 and the current position of the host vehicle detected by the current position detection unit 4. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 1 calculates distances Lf and Lr to other vehicles 18 f and 18 r before and after the host vehicle 17 traveling on the road 16. Then, by calculating changes in the distances Lf and Lr, it is possible to determine whether or not the other vehicles 18f and 18r are approaching the host vehicle 17. Whether there is another vehicle approaching the host vehicle 17 may be determined by comparing the movement speed of the other vehicles 18f and 18r received from the other vehicle 18f and 18r with the movement speed of the host vehicle 17. it can.

  If there is no other vehicle approaching the host vehicle (NO in step S202), the process of receiving information from the other vehicle is repeated (step S201). On the other hand, when it is determined that there is another vehicle approaching the host vehicle (YES in step S202), the other vehicle approaching the host vehicle earliest is specified (step S203). For example, the other vehicle 18f or 18r that approaches the host vehicle 17 first can be specified based on the distances Lf and Lr and the temporal change thereof.

  When another vehicle approaches the host vehicle from the front, that is, when the host vehicle may collide with the other vehicle in front (YES in step S204), the control unit 1 controls the front camera 11. The power supply is turned on, and the recording state by the front camera 11 is set to ON (step S205). Therefore, the front camera 11 captures a front image including another vehicle. In addition, when another vehicle approaches the host vehicle from behind, that is, when there is a possibility that the rear vehicle collides with the host vehicle (NO in step S204), the control unit 1 controls the rear camera 12. Is turned on, and the recording state by the rear camera 12 is set to ON (step S206). Therefore, the rear camera 12 captures a rear image including another vehicle.

  The video imaged by the front camera 11 or the rear camera 12 is stored in the buffer 13 together with information on the current position of the own vehicle and the imaging time (step S207). In this case, the video is stored in the buffer 13 according to the LIFO.

  Next, when the impact detection sensor 15 detects an impact exceeding a predetermined threshold value (YES in step S208), the control unit 1 displays an image including the current position and shooting time stored in the buffer 13 as a video storage unit 14. (Step S209). In this case, there is a possibility that another vehicle ahead or behind has collided with the own vehicle. Thereafter, the camera in operation is turned off and the process is terminated (step S210).

On the other hand, if the impact detection sensor 15 does not detect an impact (NO in step S208) and the next information is received from another vehicle (YES in step S211), the processing from step S202 is repeated. If there is no information from another vehicle (NO in step S211)
), The power supply to the camera in operation is turned off, and the process is terminated (step S210).

  As described above, in this embodiment, when there is no other vehicle approaching the host vehicle 17 (NO in step S202), the front camera 11 is not supplied with power to either the front camera 11 or the rear camera 12. Since neither the rear camera 12 nor the rear camera 12 captures video, it is not necessary to secure the storage areas of the buffer 13 and the video storage unit 14. Further, when there is another vehicle approaching the own vehicle 17 (YES in step S202), power is supplied to only one of the front camera 11 and the rear camera 12 on the other vehicle side that approaches the earliest to operate the image. In order to save power, the power consumption is minimized. As a result, the buffer 13 only needs to secure a minimum storage area, and necessary information can be stored at a low cost. In addition, when the impact detection sensor 15 detects an impact, only the necessary minimum video information stored in the buffer 13 is stored in the video storage unit 14, so the storage area of the video storage unit 14 is also included. It can be minimized. Furthermore, when analyzing an accident based on the information about the video stored in the video storage unit 14, the analysis process can be performed using only the minimum necessary information, so the time required for the analysis is shortened. can do.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the Example mentioned above, It can change in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention.

  For example, the front camera 11 and the rear camera 12 may be two each on the left and right, and power may be supplied only to the camera closest to the direction in which the other vehicle approaches, and the video may be taken.

  In the above-described embodiment, only the camera on the other vehicle side that approaches the earliest is operated. For example, when the other vehicle approaches from both the front and rear, both the front camera 11 and the rear camera 12 are operated. You may make it image | photograph by operating.

  Further, the video shot by the front camera 11 or the rear camera 12 is temporarily stored in the buffer 13 and then stored in the video storage unit 14 when the impact detection sensor 15 detects the impact. The video may be stored directly in the video storage unit 14 without being stored in the video storage unit 14. In this case, the video stored before the impact is detected may be stored in the video storage unit 14 in a state in which overwriting is prohibited after the impact is detected.

  In the above-described embodiment, the information including the current position of the other vehicle is received and the camera is controlled. However, the information including the current position of the own vehicle is transmitted to the other vehicle. Thus, the present invention can also be applied to a case where a desired video is shot by controlling the camera.

  Furthermore, although the case where the camera was installed in the vehicle as the moving body has been described in the above-described embodiment, the moving body may be, for example, a two-wheeled vehicle such as a bicycle or a motorcycle, or a pedestrian.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Control part 2 ... Display part 3 ... Operation part 4 ... Current position detection part 5 ... Map information storage part 6 ... Battery 7 ... Communication part 8 ... Information Unit 9... Travel history storage unit 10 .. mobile object information communication device 11 .. front camera 12 .. rear camera 13 .. buffer 14 .. video storage unit 15 .. impact detection sensor 16. Own car 18f, 18r ... other cars

Claims (3)

In a mobile information communication device that is mounted on a mobile body and transmits / receives information to / from other mobile bodies,
A current position detecting unit for detecting a current position of the moving body;
A communication unit that receives information including a current position of the other mobile unit;
A first camera that captures an image of one of the moving objects;
A second camera for photographing the other image of the moving body;
A video storage unit for storing video captured by the first camera or the second camera;
Based on the current position of the mobile body and the information received from the other mobile body, it is determined whether there is the other mobile body that approaches the mobile body, and the other mobile body that approaches the mobile body. If there is, it is determined whether the other moving body is one or the other of the moving bodies, and according to the result of the determination, control is performed to supply power to the first camera or the second camera, and an image is shot. A control unit for storing the captured video in the video storage unit;
A mobile information communication apparatus comprising:   When there are a plurality of other moving bodies that approach the moving body, the control unit is either the first camera or the second camera in the direction of the other moving body that is closest to the moving body. The mobile information communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a video is shot by controlling to supply power to one side. An impact detection sensor for detecting an impact on the moving body;
3. The mobile information communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the impact detection sensor detects an impact, the control unit performs a process of storing a video stored in the video storage unit. 4.

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